"He 'outed' me with no regard for my well-being, an act we all recognize as homophobic. I proceeded to watch him on set say degrading things to women. I remember a woman walking by the monitor as he made a comment about her 'flappy pussy'."

Ick. Sadly this isn't the worst Ellen had endured, even at such a young age. When she was 16, she says, she was harassed, preyed on, and sexually assaulted:

"When I was sixteen a director took me to dinner (a professional obligation and a very common one). He fondled my leg under the table and said, 'You have to make the move, I can't.' I did not make the move and I was fortunate to get away from that situation. It was a painful realization: my safety was not guaranteed at work. An adult authority figure for whom I worked intended to exploit me, physically. I was sexually assaulted by a grip months later. I was asked by a director to sleep with a man in his late twenties and to tell them about it. I did not. This is just what happened during my sixteenth year, a teenager in the entertainment industry."

Horrifying.

In her essay, Ellen talks not just of her personal experience but of the bigger picture, of what needs to change in Hollywood, Washington, and everywhere else.

It's an inspiring read, and we highly recommend checking out the entire thing (below):